AFWJ - How to Join

Association of Foreign Wives of Japanese

Supporting women since 1969

Who can join?

Any woman of any national or cultural origin, other than a Japanese born and raised in Japan, who is engaged to, is or has been married to, or is, or has been in a de-facto relationship with a person of Japanese national or cultural origin is eligible for membership.

If you qualify as a member and are interested in joining AFWJ, please review the joining procedures and dues requirements. If you have additional questions, please feel free to e-mail the Membership Secretary at membershipsecretary(at)afwj.org. We're looking forward to hearing from you!

You can join online now by clicking here.

Or if you prefer, you can contact the Membership Secretary by e-mail at membershipsecretary(at)afwj.org to send you an application form, some sample publications and a furikae yoshi (pay form) which you can use to pay the required dues at the post office.

After receipt of your dues is confirmed by the Treasurer, your name will be forwarded to the representative of your local district.

"With AFWJ I'm at home wherever I go in Japan. I've lived four places in three prefectures and have made dear friends instantly upon every move."

A.E. -- Saitama Prefecture

Membership Dues

As of January 1, 2015 there are two new dues plans available for new members or members rejoining after being lapsed for three years or more. If you have been lapsed for less than 3 years please pay 7,000 yen to rejoin for a full year or 3,500 yen to rejoin for half a year.

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Full-year Membership for New Members or Members Rejoining after a lapse of three or more years (From time of joining - Dec 31 of same year): ¥4,000

This option entitles you to issues of the journal from the time of joining until Dec 31 of the same year, and the current membership directory.It is only available to new members or those rejoining members whose membership has lapsed for 3 years or more. From the second year of membership dues will be 7,000 yen. Back-issues of the journals may be read online.

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Membership Special for New Members or Members Rejoining after a lapse of three or more years (From time of joining from July 1 onwards - Dec 31 of the following year): ¥8,000

This option entitles you to issues of the journal from time of joining until Dec of the following year. When joining, you will receive the membership directory for the current year and the following year’s membership directory will be sent in April. Back-issues of the journals may be read online. It is only available to new members or those rejoining members whose membership has lapsed for 3 years or more. From the third year of membership dues will be 7000yen.

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Full-year Membership (Jan 1 to Dec 31): ¥7,000

This option entitles you to six issues of the journal and one membership directory. It is the default membership for all members renewing their membership including those whose membership has lapsed for less than 3 years. Your first journal will arrive in February, the directory in April. If you join mid-year, you will receive the next available issue of the journal. Back-issues of the journals may be read online

Note: Members can pay dues for up to five years in advance.

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Half-year Membership (July 1 to Dec 31): ¥3,500

Membership begins on July 1.

This option entitles you to three issues of the journal (Aug, Oct and Dec) and one membership directory.This option is available to all members whether new, rejoining or recently lapsed. If you join after July, you will receive the next available issue of the journal. Back-issues of the journals may be read online.

Note: You may also choose to pay dues for the following year in advance, as the deadline for payment of dues is the middle of October. If you choose this option, the total amount for 1.5 years is ¥10,500.

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Overseas Airmail Postage upgrade: ¥2,000/per year

All memberships include land or sea postage and delivery. Overseas members may choose to upgrade to airmail delivery for 2,000 yen per year. (1,000 yen for the Half-year Membership)

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How to pay dues

You can pay dues online using a credit card or Pay Pal, or at any of post office in Japan using the pre-printed furikae yoshi (pay form) available here: FurikaeYoshi.pdf

Just fill out the form with your name, address and telephone number in “romaji” (Roman alphabet letters; please don’t write in kanji) and present it to the postal clerk with the proper amount. A small fee will be added by the post office.

You can also make a bank transfer or send your dues via insured mail for cash (genkin kakitome) by contacting the Treasurer for more information at afwjtreasurer(at)afwj.org

Once the transaction is confirmed by the AFWJ Treasurer, the representative of your local district will be informed and will add your name to the local newsletter list.